Latch operating mechanism



Patented Sept. 22, 1942 UNITED ST ATE'S" PAT ENT OFFICE- LATCH OPERATING MECHANISM Charles E. Gafiney, Lexington, Mass.

Application January 21, 1941, Serial-No. 375,348

7 Claims.

My invention relates to new andusefulimprovements in latch. mechanisms for doors.

An important object of my invention is the provision of a latch mechanism that is particularly adapted to be applied toan automotive vehicle and that includes independently operable inner and outer handle members either of which is independently operable to actuate the latch mechanism.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a latch mechanism of the above-mentioned character, wherein the outer handle. is slidably movable into and out of a recess in the door, the said handle being adapted to be normally disposed within the recess to prevent unauthorized persons from breaking. or forcing-themechanism, and to dispose the handle'inan un obstructive position to avoid the hazards at tending an exposed handle.

Still another object of my invention is the provision of a latch mechanism of the abovementioned character which includes provision for locking the outer handle in the door recess, which lock means is unique in that a person standing at the outer side of the door may only unlock the same by insertion of a proper key in a conventional lock mechanism; said' lock, however, being uniquely associated with the inner handle whereby actuation of' the handle is all that is necessary to move the same to an inoperative position.

Yet another object of my invention is the provision of a latch mechanism of the above-mentioned character wherein a separate manually actuated means is provided for moving the handle into and out of the recess when the locking mechanism is rendered inoperative, the said manual means being operative from either side of the door.

A further object of my invention is the provision of a unique keeper arrangement for holding the latch bolt of the door when the door is in the closed position.

Other objects and advantages of my invention, will be apparent during the course of the following description.

In the drawing, forming a part of this specification, and wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a vehicle door and illustrating a, latch mechanism embodying my invention incorporated therewith,

Figure 2 is a. transverse sectional view taken on the line 2-2'of Figure 1,

- door is in the closed position.

ment is conventional in vehicleiconstruction and Figure 8. is an exploded perspective view of the latch-operating shaft embodying a part of myinvention;

Figure 9 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View taken on the line. 9'9Tof' Figure 3;

Figure 10 is a fragmentary. edge elevation of the vehicle door'and showing the'latch bolt extending therethroug'h,

Figure 11 is a fragmentary edge elevation of the pillar illu trating the face thereof adaptedto register with the door when in the closed. position and showing the manner in which the" keepers carried'th'ereby coact withthe latchb'olt' to hold the same against displacement, and

Figure 12' is a vertical sectional'view ofa' pillar adapted. to be used in connection with a double doorvehicle construction.

In the accompanying drawing. wherein for the purpose of illustration, is shown a preferrediem bodiment of my invention, thenumeral' i5 des ignates generally thedoor off an automotiveivehicle and the numeral [6 designates generally an upright pillar, the vertical wall H of which confronts the end'wall I8'of' thedoer'whenth'e This arrangethe swinging end of the door is'providedattits outer side witha projectinglip l.9"a'daptedt'o bev received" within" a registering. vertical. recess 20'' in theouter faceof 'thepillar.

My invention is primarily concerned with a meansfo'r securelyholdingand locking the door" in the closed position; which mechanism: is"

uniquely adapted to prevent unauthorized persons iromopening' the door and to eliminateithe" hazard of'an' exposed handle; The latch bolt"'2-l is slidably'mounted'in theend wall l8 of the idoor" and the latchoperating shaft" 22' supported by the inwardly extending flange 23' extends through an' openingM' provided in the latch bolt;

25; 2 6 and 21. The intermediate section 26'is the section received by the latch bolt and itl-is,

therefore, for-med with a' radially extending lug 28 which bears against the shoulders 29 extending The. shaft is divided transversely into three sections into the opening 24. Rotation of the section 26 in a clockwise direction will cause the lug to bear against the shoulder and to retract the bolt. However, the bolt is normally held in an advanced position by a lCOlJ, spring 30 encircling the sleeve 3| which extends from the inner wall 32 of the door. As best illustrated in Figure 3, one end of the spring is fixedly secured to the sleeve and the other end thereof is fixedly secured to the latch bolt. This arrangement will effect tensioning of the spring when the latch bolt is retracted in the above manner and will permit the spring to again advance the bolt as soon as it is released by the latch operating shaft. The pposite end sections and 21 of the shaft are formed with longitudinal extensions 33 which project into the recesses 34 provided in the ends of the intermediate section 26. Figure 8 clearly illustrates the manner in which each of the extensions is in the shape of a quarter segment in transverse section, the outer surface of the extensions extending flush with the outer surface of the shaft sections and the apexes thereof extending from the longitudinal center of the shaft sections. The recesses 34 extend for the full diameter of the intermediate section 26 and extend longitudinally thereof a sufficient distance to accommodate the extensions. Thus, when the three sections of the shaft are disposed in interfitting relation the extensions of the outer sections will fill but one-half of the recesses and each of the extensions will be located at the same side of the longitudinal center of the intermediate sections. Thus, rotation of either of the end sections in a direction to raise the extensions will effect positive rotation of the intermediate section 26; however, such rotation of the intermediate section will not effect rotation of the other end section by reason of the fact that the horizontal wall of the recess will rotate about the vertex of its extension. Thus, either of the end sections of the shaft may be actuated to retract the latch bolt independently of the other of the end sections.

As hereinabove-described the section .25 of the shaft extends through the sleeve 3| and through the inner wall 32 of the door and the portion projecting beyond the inner wall is provided with a laterally extending handle member 35. The outer handle member 36 is movable into and out of a recess 31 in the face of the outer wall 38.

The handle is provided with an inwardly extending integral sleeve 39 normally supported by the bearing 40 of the outer wall, which sleeve telescopically receives the section 21 of the latch operating shaft and, as illustrated in Figure 3, the section is provided with a depending pin M which engages the inner side of the door flange 23 to prevent axial movement of the shaft section. I prefer the sleeve be splined to the shaft section or connected thereto for free longitudinal slidingmovement, as by the key 46. This arrangement permits the handle to be moved outwardly along the shaft a substantial distance, whereby its-may be manually grasped and rotated to positively rotate the shaft to retract the latch bolt, or it may be moved inwardly along the shaft to be snugly and inoperatively disposed within the recess 31. The recess 31 is preferably of the same shape as the door handle in a manner whereby the same will snugly accommodate the handle when the sleeve 39 is pushed into the .door and along the shaft.

When the handle 3.6 is received within the door recess, it is substantially impossible to remove the same therefrom by reason of the fact that the side walls of the recess closely conform with the peripheral edge of the handle. I have, therefore, provided a lever 42 which'is pivoted intermediate its ends to the standard 43 projecting into the door from the outer wall, 38 above the sleeve 39. The lower end of the lever extends into the peripheral groove 44 in the sleeve formed by the upstanding longitudinally spaced radial flanges 45 and the portion thereof extending above its pivot is connected to a finger piece 41 slidably supported by the outer wall of the door. A spring detent 48 engages the tooth 49 extending from the finger piece to at all times hold the same in either an advanced or retracted position. Obviously, the fin'ger piece 41 may be pushed inwardly to rock the lever about its pivot and to slide the sleeve 39 axially outwardly relative to the latch operating shaft. The sleeve may be moved outwardly until the handle 36 is disposed in the dotted line position in Figures 2 and 3 and, when thus positioned, the outermost radial flange 45 will engage the inner edge of the bearing 40 to limit. further movement of the sleeve. The finger piece may be made to extend beyond the plane of the door'or it may be made to extend flush therewith. This last construction is believed to be preferable for the reason that it may not readily be distinguished and will thus frustrate the efforts of unauthorized persons to gain admittance to the car. A key or any other small object may be pressed against the finger piece to push the same inwardly whereby the detent 48 will engage the outer side of the tooth 49 to hold the handle in the advanced position and when the handle is in the dotted line position it may be readily grasped and turned in a clockwise direction to retract the latch bolt.

If the person standing at the outer side of the door wishes to again position the handle within the recess it is only necessary to push on the handle to slide the sleeve inwardly on the latch operating shaft. Such action will rock the lever 42 about its pivot and force the finger piece outwardly against the resilient action of the detent 48 which will engage the inner side of the tooth 49 to securely hold the same in the outer position and with the pin 50 abutting the inner face of the wall.

If a person is seated in the car when the car doors are closed, the finger piece 5| extending through the inner face of the inner wall 32 may be actuated to move the handle into the door recess. The finger piece 5| is slidably supported by the sleeve bearing 52 and the inner end thereof is disposed in close proximity to the upper end of the lever 42. Let us assume that the handle is in the extended position and that the person Within the car desires to move the same to the retracted position within the recess. The lever 42 will then be in'the dotted line position illustrated in Figure 3 and it is only necessary to drive the distal end of the shank 53 against the upper end thereof to pivot the same to the full line position. It will be readily apparent that the tooth 49 will then engage the outer side of the detent 43 and that the handle will be securely held in the recess. The finger piece 5| will remain in the advanced position until the outer handle is again moved to the extended position.

I have provided a. unique and efficient means 7 for locking the outer handle in the retracted position, which locking means will prevent the handle from being withdrawn from the recess,

the lug will be in the full line position in Figure either by manipulation of the finger piece 41 or by an insertion of a tool, or the like, under the handle in an effort to force the same from the recess. The lock means comprises a conventional lock 54 mounted below the handle and opening through the outer wall 38. The lock is here illustrated as being of the tumbler type and the inner cylinder 55 is provided with an extending shank 56 which is received and supported within a socket 51 in the end of the spindle 58. The opposite end of the spindle is rotatably mounted within the socket 59 on the inner wall 32 which socket is provided with a seemental slot E5]. The radially extending pin iii of the shank projects into the slot, whereby turning of the cylinder 55 by the proper key will cause the pin to rotate the spindle to move the radially extending flange 62 of the spindle angularly into and out of the path of the depending lug 63 carried by the sleeve 38. Figure 5 best illustrates this construction. When the flange B2 is in the full line position, the distal end thereof extends in overlapping relation with the depending end of the lug 63 and its normal position, when the handle is disposed within the recess and the cylinder 55 is locked, is directly in the path of travel of the lug to prevent the outer handle from being slidably moved along the latch operating shaft. It will be readily apparent that any attempt to move the outer handle axially along the shaft will move the lug into engagement with the flange t0 effectively prevent such movement of the handle. If, however, the person opening the door is provided with the requisite key he may insert the same in the lock 54 and rotate the flange 62 to the dotted line position and out of register with the lug 63. The finger piece 41 may then be moved inwardly to slide the handle to the extended position in the manner hereinabovedescribed.

Obviously, the lock 54 may be operated only by a person standing exteriorly of the door. Let us assume that the door is locked and that a person within the vehicle desires to unlock the same. An arm 64 integrally connects with and extends radially from the section 25 of the latch operating shaft through a segmental slot 65 in the sleeve 3|. The outer end of the arm is provided with a transverse member 66 the ends of which are formed with depending fingers 6'! and 68 spaced a substantial distance apart and at opposite sides of the radially extending lug 69 of the spindle 58. Figure 6 best illustrates this construction and indicates the position of the lug 69 when the spindle is rotated by the lock mechanism. Note that the inner handle is normally horizontally positioned whereby the arm 64 will depend vertically and the fingers 6'! and 63 will also be vertically disposed and at opposite sides of the lug 69. When the flange 62 is vertically disposed to lock the outer handle, the lug 69 will be disposed in the full line position in Figure 6 and against the finger 68. When, however, the flange 62 has been moved to the dotted line position by the lock mechanism 54 to permit withdrawal of the outer handle from its recess, the lug 69 will be moved to the dotted line position adjacent the finger 61. It may thus be seen that the lock mechanism 54 may throw the flange 62 and lug B9 to a locked or unlocked position without effecting movement of the inner handle 35. Let us assume, however, that the door is locked and that it is desired to open the same by meansof the inner handle 35. If the door is locked,

6. To unlock the same it is necessary to turn the handle downwardly whereby the finger 68 will engage the lug 69 to move the same to the dotted line position. The inner handle member may then be actuated to rotate the shaft section 25 which will, in turn, rotate the intermediate section 26 to retract the latch bolt 2|. If, on the other hand, the flange 62 is in the unlocked position, the lug 69 will be in the dotted line position in Figure 6 and it is only necessary to retract the outer handle by means of the finger piece 5| and to. move the inner handle upwardly to cause the finger 61 to rotate the lug to the full line or locked position. When the inner handle is rotated in the manner last described, the section 25 of the latch operating shaft will rotate independently of the intermediate section 26 by reason of the unique association and corelation of the extension 33 with the recess 34 which permits the section 25 to have a free in dependent rotation through substantially 90.

As illustrated in Figures 2 and 10, the end of the latch bolt 2| extending through the end wall I8 of the door is provided with an elongated transverse head Ill the upper and lower edges of which are serrated, as at H. The end of the head directed toward the inner side of the door is formed with divergent upper and lower edges 12 and 13 which engage the beveled surfaces 14 and 15 of the keepers 16 and H. The head is normally extended beyond the wall 18 of the door bythe spring 30 and I have, therefore, provided a transverse groove 18 in the vertical wall 11 of the pillar which extends from the keepers to the outer side thereof. Each of the upper and lower keepers includes a vertically arranged plate 19 movable in a recess 80. Each of the plates 19 is formed with an outwardly extending leg BI and springs 82 are disposed within the recesses to hold the confronting serrated edges 84 thereof a minimum distance apart and seated against the opposite sides of the intermediate lug 83. Thus, as the door is swung to the closed position, the head of the latch bolt traverses the groove 18 and the divergent edges 12 and 13 thereof contact the beveled edges 14 and 15 of the keepers to force the keepers upwardly against the resilient action of the springs 82. As the door moves to the closed position, the serratures H of the latch bolt head and the serratures 84 of the keepers will interlock to eflicaciously prevent swinging movement of the door in a reverse directionl The springs 82 will hold the keepers securely pressed against the latch bolt head to prevent, accidental or inadvertent release of the same though obviously the latch bolt may be axially retracted by rotation of the latch operating shaft 22 to move the head H1 into the recess 85 in the door and free from engagement with the keepers. When thus positioned the head of the bolt will be entirely released by the keepers to permit opening of the door.

Figure 12 illustrates the manner in which a keeper arrangement, similar to the one hereinabove-described may be adapted to retain the swinging ends of both the front and rear doors of the vehicle. Many automobile constructions are provided with reardoors which swing outwardl-y and rearwardly and with front doors which swing outwardly and forwardly. These doors have an intermediate pillar It and a latch means is carried by the vertical wall IT for retaining the front door and. by the wall 86 for retaining the, rear door. The formation and coaction of the keepers 16 and 11 are identical with those hereinabove described and no further explanation is, therefore, thought to be necessary.

The vertically movable keepers 81 and 88 carried by the rear wall 86 are disposed in an elongated recess 89 and each of the keeper plates is provided with a rearwardly extending lug 90 which normally seats against the transverse wall 9| retaining the outerends of the coil springs 82. Recesses 92 extend beyond the transverse walls 9| and coil springs 93 are disposed therein whereby one end of the springs will seat against the lugs 90 to constantly urge the same toward each other whereby the confronting edges 94 and 95 of the keepers will be disposed a minimum distance apart. This distance is slightly less than the width of the latch bolt head and the confronting edges 94 and 95 are serrated in the manner described for the keepers l6 and 11 whereby the serrated edges of the'keepers will interlock with the serrated edges of the bolt head to hold the door against reverse swinging movement.

It will be readily apparent that, in each case, the pairs of keepers Hi, 11 and 81, 88 will cooperate with the latch bolts of the front and rear doors, respectively, of the vehicle in holding the same in a closed position. The coil springs 82 and 93 will resiliently urge the respective keepers into pressed engagement with the intermediate latch bolt and the serrated interlocking edges of the keepers and the latch bolt heads will efficaciously prevent inadvertent opening of the doors.

It may thus be seen that the latch bolt may be retracted by manipulation of either the inner or outer handles and that either of the handles may be actuated without effecting actuation of the other. The outer handle may be normally operatively disposed within a recess to prevent turning of the same and a lock mechanism is provided with means for preventing the movement of the handle to the extended position. Thus, an unauthorized person not having a key adapted to lock the lock mechanism may not withdraw the handle from the door recess and the door may not be opened from the outside until the outer handle is moved to the extended position. A suitable finger piece is provided which may be manipulated to move the handle to the extended position when the lock mechanism has been operated to permit such movement of the handle. This particular and unique construction also permits the outer handle to be either locked or unlocked in the retracted position by manipulation of the inner handle. When the inner handle is operated to release the lock mechanism the latch bolt is automatically and simultaneouslyretracted to permit simultaneous unlocking and opening of the door. The outer handle may be moved from the extended position to a retracted position by a person seated within the vehicle by means of the finger piece 7 It is to be understood that the form of my invention, herewith shown and described, is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and that various changes in the size, shape and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of my invention, or scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A latch mechanism for a door having a recess comprising a latch operating shaft, a handle member connected with the shaft for rotating the same, said handle having a radially extending lug member and being slidable relative to the shaft for movement into and out of the door recess, a spindle mounted for rotation adjacent the latch operating shaft having an end recess and a radially extending lug rotatable into the path of the said first lug, and a lock mechanism having a projecting shank received within the end recess of the spindle for limited independent rotation therein, whereby movement of the handle into the door recess and movement of the lock mechanism into the locked position will position the second lug in the path of the first lug to prevent withdrawal of the handle from the recess and whereby movement of the lock mechanism to an unlocked position will swing the second lug out of alignment with the first lug to permit withdrawal of the said handle.

2. A latch mechanism for a door having a recess comprising a latch operating shaft, a handle member connected with the shaft for rotating the same, said handle having a radially extending lug member and being slidable relative to the shaft for movement into and out of the door recess, a spindle mounted for rotation adjacent the latch operating shaft having a radially extending lug rotatable into the path of the first lug, a lock mechanism operatively connected to the spindle to rotate the same, whereby movement of the handle into the door recess and movement of the lock mechanism to the locked position will position the second lug in the path of the first lug to prevent withdrawal of the handle from the recess and whereby movement of the lock mechanism to an unlocked position will swing the second lug out of alignment with the first lug to permit withdrawal of the said handle, and independent manually operable means associated with the handle for moving the same into or out of the door recess.

3. A latch mechanism for a door having a recess comprising a latch operating shaft, a handle member connected with the shaft for rotating the same, said handle having a radially extending lug member and being slidable relative to the shaft for movement into and out of the door recess, a spindle mounted for rotation adjacent the latch operating shaft having a radially extending lug rotatable into the path of the first lug, a lock mechanism operatively connected to the spindle to rotate the same, whereby movement of the outer handle into the door recess and movement of the lock mechanism into the locked position will position the second lug in the path of the first lug to prevent withdrawal of the handle from the recess and whereby movement of the lock mechanism to an unlocked position will swing the second lug out of alignment with the first lug to permitwithdrawal of the said handle, a pivoted lever having one end thereof operating within a peripheral groove in the handle, and a pin slidably mounted in the door for movement into engagement with the other end of the lever whereby sliding of the pin will rock the lever about its pivot to move the handle relative to the latch operating shaft.

4. A latch mechanism for a door having a recess comprising a latch operating shaft, a handle member connected with the shaft for rotating the same, said handle having a radially extending lug member and being slidable relative to the shaft for movement into and out of the door recess, a spindle mounted for rotation adjacent the latch operating shaft having a radially extending lug rotatable into the path of the first lug, a lock mechanism connected to the spindle to impart rotation thereto, whereby movement of the outer handle into the door recess and movement of the mechanism into the locked position will position the second lug in the path of the first lug to prevent withdrawal of the handle from the recess, and whereby movement of the mechanism to an unlocked position will swing the second lug out of alignment with the first lug to permit withdrawal of the said handle, a pivot lever having one end received within a peripheral groove in the door handle, pins slidably mounted in the opposite sides of the door adapted to engage the other end of the lever to rock the same about its pivot and to slide the handle relative to the latch operating shaft, and a keeper coacting with at least one of said pins for holding the handle in the selected position.

5. A latch mechanism for a door having a recess comprising a latch operating shaft, independently operable inner and outer handle members connected with the shaft for rotating the same, said outer handle having a radially extending lug member and being slidable relative to the shaft for movement into and out of the door recess, a spindle mounted for rotation adjacent the latch operating shaft having a radially extending lug rotatable into the path of the first lug, a lock mechanism operatively connected to the spindle to rotate the same, whereby movement of the outer handle into the door recess and movement of the lock mechanism into the locked position will position the second lug in the path of the first lug to prevent withdrawal of the handle from the recess and whereby movement of the lock mechanism to an unlocked position will swing the second lug out of alignment with the first lug to permit withdrawal of the said outer handle, and an arm angularly movable by rotation of the inner handle member having spaced fingers embracing a radial second lug of the spindle, said fingers permitting independent movement of the spindle by the lock mechanism but adapted to engage the second lug upon rotation of the inner handle memher to rotate the spindle for moving the said first lug into or out of alignment with the lug extending from the outer handle.

6. In latch mechanism for a door having a recess therein, a shaft, a sleeve having sliding connection with the said shaft, a radially extending handle formed on the sleeve movable into and out of the said recess, a radially projecting lug formed on the inner portion of the sleeve, a rotary member mounted parallel with the shaft and having a lock receiving recess in the outer end thereof, a radially extending lug formed on the said rotary member and movable into a position intercepting the lug on the sleeve, and key actuated lock mechanism mounted at the outer end of the rotary member for turning the same to dispose the radial lug thereof in position to intercept the lug on the sleeve to preclude extension of the sleeve and for moving the lug of the rotary member to an angular position whereby to enable projection of the sleeve.

7. In door latch mechanism, a latch operating shaft, a sleeve fitted on one end of the shaft, a radially extending handle projecting from the outer end of the sleeve operable to turn the shaft for operation of the latch, the said sleeve being slidable axially on the shaft to dispose the handle in extended or retracted positions, a lug extending from the said sleeve, a rotary spindle mounted adjacent the said shaft having a recess in the outer portion, a lug extending radially from the said spindle and operable to assume a position with reference to the lug on the sleeve to preclude outward movement of the latter and extension of the handle, locking mechanism mounted to turn within the recess of the spindle for releasably locking the spindle with the lug on the latter disposed in sleeve lug intercepting position, and manually operable means having connection with the sleeve for starting the latter to handle extending arrangement when the spindle is unlocked and turned to swing the lug thereon to releasing position.

CHARLES E. GAFFNEY. 

